Woman and daughter killed after bandits raid Lekwamuru Village in Samburu County

Ms Karipen Lesiameto packs her belongings as she prepares to leave Lekwamuru Village in Samburu County on December 22, 2014 following a bandit attack Sunday night. A woman and her child were shot dead during the attack. PHOTO | VIVIAN JEBET | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • More than 10 goats were stolen during the incident, and tens of others killed in the ensuing shootout.
  • Samburu East Assistant County Commissioner Tobias Onyango said about 15 people attacked the villagers as they slept.
  • One of the residents, Mr Gabriel Lengishili said he survived as he tried to rescue his family out of the village as the bandits shot in the air.
  • Samburu East MP Raphael Letimalo condemned the killings and accused police and conservancy rangers deployed in the area of failing to do their job.

A 28-year-old woman and her eight-month-old daughter were on Sunday night killed after heavily armed suspected bandits raided Lekwamuru Village in Samburu County.

More than 10 goats were stolen during the incident, and dozens others killed in the ensuing shootout.

Samburu East Assistant County Commissioner Tobias Onyango said about 15 people attacked the villagers as they slept, adding that police were pursuing the criminals.

Police officers, he said, had been dispatched to Archers Post, where the bandits were said to have escaped to.

"We are warning them that their days are numbered and that the government will not condone this again.

“We are mobilising all our officers and machineries at our disposal to disarm the communities," Mr Onyango said.

Mr Gabriel Lengishili, a resident of Lekwamuru Village in Samburu shows where armed attackers shot at villagers on Sunday night, December 21, 2014. PHOTO | VIVIAN JEBET | NATION MEDIA GROUP

SURVIVED ATTACK

One of the residents who survived the attack, Mr Gabriel Lengishili, said bandits shot in the air as he tried to rescue his family out of the village.

“We are not safe (and) we are leaving this area because of the insecurity, but we don't know where we are going to spend the night,” Mr Lengishili said.

He accused the security personnel of not doing anything to end the raids, saying similar incidents had been reported in the past but there was no decisive response from the government.

Samburu East MP Raphael Letimalo condemned the killings and accused the police and conservancy rangers in the area of failing to do their job.

Mr Letimalo called on the county government of Samburu and security agencies to disarm the two communities to ensure that these clashes do not escalate.

He further urged the pastoralist communities to embrace peace and dialogue as the government comes up with a lasting solution to end the menace.

“We have this tendency of neglecting issues. I want to urge the rangers and the police to follow the footprints to locate the bandits so that they can face the law,” Mr Letimalo insisted.

He added that security personnel should be alert, adding that the 10 rangers who were deployed to the area should have more firearms.

In November, two people were killed by suspected Borana raiders, who attacked them two kilometres from Archers Police Station.